Where do you find other players

[BrokenFusion]

Craigslist is pretty lame around here. I tried out for a few bands that were pretty bad and declined. Would you play with a less than stellar band to get out there and try to network and work your way up to a better situation or wait for the right band before you dive in?

[Chicken Monkey]

Definitely take what you can get and work your way up. It's not romance, it's business.

[SpaceNorman]

Whenever I find myself with time/desire to be playing and no band/project to play with - I start beating the bushes (Craigslist, music stores, hitting the local live entertainment joints) to see what opportunities I can develop. Then I go with whatever I figure presents the best opportunity at the time.

I have some very basic minimal requirements - i.e., my potential bandmates need to be marginally competent (i.e., if I say it's an chord - they don't give me the deer in the headlights look), there's no obvious drug/alcohol dependency issues, etc. - and that they're reasonably punctual and willing to work.

Even if the band ain't great - it doesn't matter. I ain't marrying 'em - I'm just trying to make a little music. When something opportunities present themselves - I evaluate them as they come.

I see little sense in setting the bar real high - while dismissing lessor opportunities and sitting home - if/when nothing hits the bar.

[Vito Corleone]

I'd get out there and network if the band wasn't so bad that I could barely stand to play with them. If you're gonna wait for the right band, no reason you can't do it while being 'out there' as opposed to just sitting at home. The right band is going to come along any SLOWER by you being out there and might come along quicker.

[SeniorBlues]

This may or may not work for you, but I had all kinds of false starts with Craigslist until I tried to start my own project. Twice, actually. One was a fusion trio; the other a large format soul band. In both cases, I made some connections with more compatible players than when I simply answered ads. The soul band attracted one player who turned out to be the leader of the group I'm with now. His keyboard player left town, and he liked what I was trying to do, professionally and musically. Dumb luck, maybe, but it worked for me.

[Leftcoast123]

It's a tough crossroads to be at. I tried the CL and Bandmix route earlier this year to expand my network and see if I could find some local players for my new project. I interacted with some only on-line and a couple I actually played some songs with but ended up going out of my area to source players. I thought long and hard about still keeping some ties to these local players but their lack of talent, experience and the like finally made me make the decision that playing with these induviduals would do me more harm than good. By that I mean both reputation and my frustration level. I will add that one of them has some real potential and I think there is a possibility of a long term gel to another project. I think you did the right thing by declining.

[bruto]

I hang out with a bunch of musicians, so it's never been hard for me to find someone - except singers. We've held auditions and seem to never find someone with a good voice.

A friend of mine plays in jazz band with 2 female Brazilian singers. They're excellent. If I had enough money, I'd take a recruiting trip to Brazil.

[Chicken Monkey]

Originally Posted by SeniorBlues

This may or may not work for you, but I had all kinds of false starts with Craigslist until I tried to start my own project... In both cases, I made some connections with more compatible players than when I simply answered ads.

I want to disagree with you; in theory, the world would be a better place if more people answered ads, and were willing to hitch on to someone else's vision. However, I've built my most successful, satisfying, and functional band by putting up my own ad, finding a right-hand man, and building from contacts from there.

Originally Posted by bruto

If I had enough money, I'd take a recruiting trip to Brazil.

Right. "Recruiting".

[SeniorBlues]

 

Originally Posted by Chicken Monkey

I want to disagree with you; in theory, the world would be a better place if more people answered ads, and were willing to hitch on to someone else's vision. However, I've built my most successful, satisfying, and functional band by putting up my own ad, finding a right-hand man, and building from contacts from there.

 

I agree with you in theory. Thing is, there are a lot of lurkers who read CL ads who are more like you than the ones who actually post. You get them to come out of the woodwork by describing a well thought out project.

[Chicken Monkey]

 

Originally Posted by SeniorBlues

I agree with you in theory. Thing is, there are a lot of lurkers who read CL ads who are more like you than the ones who actually post. You get them to come out of the woodwork by describing a well thought out project.

 

When I re-read your post, you mentioning a soul band reminded me that my current band is the not the first band I tried to start thru Craigslist. I put up a vague, mushy ad looking for guys who wanted to join a soul band, and I got one responder who didn't return my calls after the initial meetup. Using what I learned from that ad, I put together this band--clear, realistic goals, straight-ahead description of myself and the project (none of the "electro-folk funk" type mashup terms that don't actually mean anything), and the levels of my commitment (how often to practice and gig, how "big" I'm willing to get, etc.). "Describing a well thought out project", in your words, is the way to go.

[stratotastic]

Originally Posted by Leftcoast123

...I thought long and hard about still keeping some ties to these local players but their lack of talent, experience and the like finally made me make the decision that playing with these induviduals would do me more harm than good. By that I mean both reputation and my frustration level.

Yeah--I also have to somewhat disagree with the advice to hook onto some specific band just to "get out there" and "network." If you're stuck in one band, you're just hanging out with those specific guys, and if the band sucks, you're associated with them. Keep auditioning with as many projects as you can, even if it doesn't seem like a great fit. I've gone to some sucky auditions where there's a telepathic "we should be doing something together" with one of the other players. Grab their info and build it that way. And don't bother with open mics. Waste of time.

OP, I'm also in PA and I agree it seems like a wasteland (not sure where you are but I'm talking Philly area), but there are good players out there. You just have to find out who they are and sidle up.

[sk5223]

First time poster here.

I placed the following ad on CL and got only one response. He basically said:

[SpaceNorman]

 

Originally Posted by sk5223

I placed the following ad on CL and got only one response. He basically said:

[Ku'Yleh]

open mics, bulletin boards at music stores, local papers, craigslist, friends of friends

[wesg]

What are you hauling that weighs that much?? I haul a tonewheel spinet organ, an 88-key keyboard, old-ass 15" keyboard amp, a four-foot-high Leslie, cables, mike stand, mikes, and figure I'm somewhere around 450-500 lbs.

sk5223, I'm not Norman's experience league, but I won't join any group that doesn't already have a drummer and a bass player. It's just no fun. I don't have time to waste waiting for a bassist/drummer to come along when I could be working on a serious project that is on its way out of the garage.

My current project has had about 6 or 7 rehearsals and one private party. We need to get out of the garage NOW. But, we just hired our 2nd singer. Let's hope this guy works out, his first rehearsal is this week..

[SeniorBlues]

Originally Posted by wesg

I won't join any group that doesn't already have a drummer and a bass player.

OR . . . you could get in on the ground floor and have some say in who signs on. A lot of musos aren't "keyboard compatible". . . . or maybe it's just me.

Having said that, I'm not schlepping a lot of gear to rehearsals unless I'm confident the project will pan out.

OR . . . do what I did and trade an old synth for a set of drums and host rehearsals!!

[SpaceNorman]

Originally Posted by wesg

What are you hauling that weighs that much??

Ya know ... I find myself asking the same question. Here's how it breaks down:

Keyboard Rack: Motif ES Rack Unit, Motu MidiExpressXt, PSM200 IEM Transceiver, Rackmount Power Conditioner, snake cable, 6u Flight case - 90 lbs.
CP300: 71.6 lbs plus case (30 lbs) ... 101 lbs
Korg Kronos: 50.7 lbs plus case (25 lbs).... 75 lbs
Yamaha DSR112 powered speakers: 47 lbs + bag (9 lbs) = 56 lbs x 2 speakers
Keyboard Miscellanous - pedals, cables, mics, tools, gig miscellaneous - 75 lbs
Bench: 14 lbs
Stand: 28 lbs

Total: 495 lbs.

No matter how you slice it - that {censored} simply adds up quick!

[wesg]

The snake and speakers - do those count as PA gear, or is that just what you use to monitor yourself and feed the sound guy? They look like PA tops, but would make one heck of a "keyboard amp"! ..... I just read your signature. Okay. You have one heck of rig, 2600W of stage monitoring, holy crap. I guess you can never have too much headroom.

I also had no idea the CP300 and Kronos weighed that much; that was my primary complaint about the PF-85 when I still hauling it around town. But that thing is built like a tank, steel case with a wood base.

Glad to see I'm not the only guy who brings tools to gigs. I also started bringing a cordless mechanic's work light. Makes hooking up my crap in a dark environment so much easier.

[SpaceNorman]

Originally Posted by wesg

The snake and speakers - do those count as PA gear, or is that just what you use to monitor yourself and feed the sound guy? They look like PA tops, but would make one heck of a "keyboard amp"! ..... I just read your signature. Okay. You have one heck of rig, 2600W of stage monitoring, holy crap. I guess you can never have too much headroom.

In my case the snake and speakers are part of my keyboard rig and not the FOH or general "vocal" monitor system.

My keyboard "snake" is a custom built snake cable I purchased through www.redco.com. It's an 8 channel cable that carries 4 TRS connections (Left and Right Outputs) and 4 MIDI connections (MIDI IN and MIDI OUT) from each keyboard. The "fan" on the keyboard end of the cable is custom length - so that the connectors end up in the perfect spot for each board - and allows me to "dress" the cable neatly along the supports of the keyboard stand. The "rack" end of the snake is prepatched into my mixer and the MOTO MidiExpressXT interface. The snake "lives" in the unused rack space for transport and storage. Setup is simple - pop of the rack covers, plug the rack's power cable in, extend the snake cable and patch into the keyboards. The back of the rack has a patch panel with XLR jacks for the outputs to my stage monitors, a pair of 1/4" jacks that I use to connect up either an iPod or Laptop to when I want to play "recorded material" through my rig (helpful when learning new stuff....). There is also a pair of 1/4" TRS jacks that provide a stereo send to the FOH board - as well as a single 1/4" TRS input that accepts an AUX send that delivers my "monitor mix" from the FOH board (i.e., vocals and any other instrument that I want in my monitor mix). The rack is heavy - but definitely makes for a simple and clean setup.

My stage monitors are simply powered speakers - in that same class of speakers like the JBL PRX612M or QSC K12 that many keyboard players are using these days. The Yamaha DSRs are a bit heavier than most - but not enough to kill me. At the time I purchased them, the manufacterer's rebate that was offered made them the most cost effective deal out there. I love how my rig sounds in stereo - so I'm stuck carrying two of 'em. It isn't light - but damn it sounds good! The headroom means that my amplification never struggles to keep up (so it never gets that "clanky" tone that so many keyboard amplification rigs end up at when they start getting pushed). Carrying the extra cabinet is a minor price to pay for the pleasure I get out of sitting in the middle of my own little stereo field. I feel inspired by the way my rig sounds - and that's something I can't say for many of the amplification setups I've used before.

The case that I use for my "keyboard misc" stuff is one of those rolling tool cases (roughly the size of a medium sized cooler - with a tray on top, and storage space beneath it. I've got a good selection of cable adaptors (XLR to 1/4" TRS) and "Y" cable; a cable testor, a couple of mics, the body pack for my PSM200 IEMs, batteries for my AX Synth, etc. - along with a roll of gaffers tape, a couple of screwdrivers, a pair of needle nosed pliers, a couple of small adjustable wrenchs, a couple of LED flashlights, etc. It doesn't take long for that stuff to add up to some real weight. It rolls - so it's not that bad - but it does need to get lifted in and out of the van. I view it as coming with the territory.

I made my peace with the fact that playing keyboards means I'm gonna be schlepping a significant pile of gear. The typical venues I work allow me to pull up close to the entrance to load / unload. A handtruck means I'm not actually carrying the weight. The piece count (# of pieces of gear that need to move) means I make a few trips between stage and vehicle ... but not so much that it kills me.

[Yer Blues]

The bigger your network the easier it will be. Be friendly, open, and put yourself out there and it will expand. I don't go out as nearly much as I should, but I am working on it.

One thing about responding to ads vs. placing them..... I did that when I first moved and what I found was it was easy to see why the bandleaders were having to resort to craigslist to find people. They were difficult to deal with and the musicians that knew their personalities were difficult to deal with. However, I met a lot of people in the brief time I played with each of them and towards the end started exchanging contact info. At some of the auditions I would meet another musician I clicked with, but couldn't really ask for their contact info in front of the band leader. Maybe one way around that would be putting it out in the open that everyone should exchange contact info? I'm not sure how you get around that.

Anyways, through one of those bands I met a guy who I played with regularly for about two years. He knew people who were good musicians and good people, so it worked out really well.

You just have to put yourself out there until you find something worth investing your time into.

[stratotastic]

 

At some of the auditions I would meet another musician I clicked with, but couldn't really ask for their contact info in front of the band leader. Maybe one way around that would be putting it out in the open that everyone should exchange contact info? I'm not sure how you get around that.

 

 

Just hand 'em your card on the way out, or better yet, hand everyone your card when you arrive.